[Hopton Mitch]

Hello all, I'm new to this forum and looking at liberating a few battery hens in the near future. To say I'm new to keeping hens is an understatement I havent done anything other than read these very informative pages and have a look on ebay for some coop's and run's, so please excuse my ignorance in advance.

I am intending to start off with about 4-6 hens and would like your advise on housing them and securing them, should I go for an all singing and dancing raised coop and combined run or should I knock one up myself? Should it be able to be moved or is it okay to be static? I have an area that is about 8 feet wide that tapers down to about 4 feet and approx 18 feet long of which I'll be handing over the freehold to my new chums.

I live in a small rural village with a lot of bird life so I think it is imperative to keep them within a coop to prevent any avian nasties getting to them. I've also read that felt roofs can attract red mite, is there any truth in this?

Could you also advise me what accesories/feed that I will need prior to the girls arriving.

Thanks in advance

Mitch

[craig1981]

im not as experienced as many on here but all i can advise is to do what i did . I couldnt afford one of those expensive coops so i simply converted a 6ft by 4ft shed just by adding 3 perches and a chest of drawers split into two nest boxes and my girls which ive had since tuesday seem very happy and have so far had 2 eggs with hopefully many more to come . I then fenced of an area at the rear of the shed roughly 8ft by 10 ft using a thick wire mesh buried about 1ft into the ground and 6ft tall . At the rear of the shed i cut a drawbridge type door to allow the girls easy access in and out . On top of the run ive attached netting normally used to keep herons off ponds just to keep the cats and other birds using the chickens land and so far its worked wonders . 
       As far as food goes you can buy specialist ex battery hen food and after a few weeks they will be able to be put on normal layer pellets . Food containers and drinking equipment is also readily available online . I got all mine from pets at home just so they could deliver it for me . Also have  grit and oyster shell on hand to help the girls with calcium and digestion and apple cider vinegar to add to the water for extra health perks . I learned everything i know from the knowledgable folk on here just by reading other  threads .  GOOD LUCK . all the initial hard work is definately worth it . Im crazy about my 8 girls already

[SMD66]

Just one point regarding vermin, when we got our 1st hens we just got a galvenized feeder with a 'hat' to keep the feed dry.  We initially made the mistake of leaving the feed out, we ended up feeding 1/2 the local bird population and in the winter attracted rats which, as we found when we moved the shed, had taken vast quantities if food and dug under the shed to make a cosy retreat to eat it.  If you are disciplined enough to move the feed every night then great, if not I then try the treadle feeders.  We got ours from www.flytesofancy.co.uk.  If the shed isn't on hard standing or on 'legs' then rats will love to burrow under it.
We found that the price of custom made hen houses seemed very expensive so converted a shed ourselves, perches, pop hole and nest boxes, job done.  Although we have a bigger one now as we have more hens, our initial shed  was 1 x 1.2 m and about 1.5 m high, the roof was felted but we were lucky enough not to get any red mite.  I have heard though that mites will hide under felt so maybe avoid it if poss,  maybe we were just lucky.
good luck.

[joyfull]

I made the mistake of buying one of those of ebay - there is no way they can house the amount of hens that they say they can. Get a shed either new or second hand - look on your local freecycle group you may get one for free. Put in a perch, some nesting boxes (can be any old box) and put in a pop hole. Then bobs your uncle one shed that will house far more hens. If you wish to have them in a run you need to consider if you want it moveable or fixed. Mine are free rangeing so unable to advise on the rum apart from make sure its weld mesh not chicken wire, and that it is covered and buried into the ground. You can buy feeders and drinkers cheaply enough or put down large pans, dishes or as mine have in the garden for their water a bucket thats about 8 inches high.
The cost of buying a shed and converting it plus a run will be less than one of those raised coop types. After you've got your hens you will wonder why you never did it earlier 
Bye the way mitch forgot to say welcome 

[bubs]

cheaper to buy a small garden shed , run a perch along one side and have 2/3 sheves on back wall holding nest boxes filled with straw or some sort of cabinet that does the same .
if you got a small shed it would be wise to raise it about 12 inches off the ground and tack chicken wire underneath and about 10 inches up around the bottom of the shed on the 4 sides , use remaining chicken wire to do an enclosed run.
for drinkers and feeders use old pots and pans or baking trays because the chickens will spill everything over the floor anyhow . if you put a nice gleaming drinker down near a puddle of mud the chicken will drink from the mud {fact}.
it sounds a lot of work but its a lot wiser to do it this way and the birds will have loads of space and most importantly you can fit in the shed to clean it correctly , you could probably get a great set up for £200-£250 i have seen small chicken coops cost much more than that for something 4ft square.

[agingchick]

Hi  I agree with bubs I brought a feeder and drinker and my girls ignored them. they preferred to drink out of the plastic tray that the blackbirds used to bathe in. I now use bowls for their food and take them in at night to wash and fill up for the next day.
I converted a shed I had in my garden and made a run out of some wood lying around in mine, my dads, and my daughters garden all I had to pay for was some weldmesh.
Diane

[Hopton Mitch]

Cheers all for the info, I toyed with the shed route previously but now you've convinced me. Will it cause the hens any problems if I put down a concrete base? I'm just thinking that it will be easier to clean out and it will almost eradicate any rodent problems.

Is it a good idea to put a ramp up to the nesting box level or will they flutter up there (sorry if this is a stupid question).

What about the water supply within the shed? Will an old baking tray suffice in there or do I need to go a bit up-market to prevent spillage?

[craig1981]

no water supply is needed within the shed . if they are out long enough in the day they will get enough food and water to last . I have my nest box at ground level and perches about 3 ft high  but folk do different . mine have slabs and a bit of grass which wont last long and a muddy area for them to scratch around in and when its dry it makes a lovely dust bath

[poultrygeist]

Hi HM. Welcome 

If you have a look through the information pages http://chat.allotment-garden.org/index.php?board=13.0 there's info on making and siting a coop and all about fox-proofing, as well as some good advice on red mites, etc.

If you have a felt roof, run some bitumen a few inches under the edges to seal it to the roof. That way they can't hide underneath.

COncrete should be ok providing you put down a thick layer of bark chippings or equivalent and make sure yo have a container with some soil/sand in as a dust bath.
They'll want a ramp or ladder up to their perches but they'll prefer the nest boxes lower down.

The run should be protected with welded mesh rather than chicken wire. Chicken wire will not keep out anything with teeth.

Rob

[raeburg]

If you can roof the run over with PVC sheeting or similar it helps keep the smell down and adds to bio security.  Wood chipping on the floor is easy to maintain and can be replaced relatively cheaply (especially if you know a tree surgeon).  I found an old stone sink which is filled with sand for a dust bath.  Use weld mesh as foxes and rats can't bite through it like they can chicken wire.  Be aware that chickens are addictive.  I started with 8 ex-bats and now have 14  and 10 chicks!